


Independence Day

by SailorLestrade



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Abuse, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst, Arson, Based off a song, Domestic Violence, F/M, Fourth of July, Happy Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-13
Updated: 2017-04-13
Packaged: 2018-10-18 06:37:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10611285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorLestrade/pseuds/SailorLestrade
Summary: The reader has a case in a town four hours from the bunker. But some things aren't always what they seem and the past can be a scary place.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Based off the Martina McBride song "Independence Day" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VPpAZ9_qAw. There isn't exactly a Dean x Reader vibe here, but I just thought I would put it as that.

The Winchester boys had known (Y/n) since she was sixteen. She was a foster kid living at Jim Murphy’s place. Dean was eighteen and knew everything, and Sam was fourteen and really did know everything. They were all close, but neither of the boys knew much about (Y/n)’s life from before she came to live with the pastor. All they knew that was when John gave them the day off to celebrate July 4th, (Y/n) would disappear into the house and wouldn’t come out.

It wasn’t until they were older and on their own that the boys learned anything about (Y/n)’s past. She came up to Sam and Dean as they watched some random sport on TV. She thought about handling this one alone. It was just a ghost to them. To her, it was personal and she almost didn’t want to ask them to go. But Dean saw the paper in her hand.

“Got us a case?” Dean asked. It was getting close to the 4th of July and he didn’t really think that she would want to go anyplace.

“Uh…Sharon, Kansas.” She explained. “It’s about four hours from here. Almost to the Oklahoma line. Poltergeist.” She looked down at the paper.

“Sure.” Sam said. “Might be nice to get out for a little bit.” (Y/n) nodded.

“Sharon has a 4th festival and fireworks.” She told them. Dean and Sam looked at each other. They wanted to ask, but she was so quiet and reserved right now. They didn’t want to push her and scare her away. So they packed up the Impala and left Lebanon for Sharon.

****

Driving into town, the three hunters were greeted by red, white, and blue everywhere. They saw kids running around and having fun. There were some couples flying beautiful kites in the distance. It was a cute little town. But neither Sam nor Dean noticed the way (Y/n) tensed up when they passed a lot with an empty building.

“So, where to?” Dean asked. (Y/n) looked forward.

“There’s a motel on the other end of town.” She explained. “Why don’t you two go snag a room? I have someplace I need to go.”

“Let me drive you. I can go with you.” Sam said.

“No!” (Y/n) snapped before grabbing her purse and jumping out of the car. “I’ll meet up with you guys later.” She slammed the door and made her way down the street.

“That seem normal to you?” Dean asked.

“Nope.” Sam responded.

“Should we follow her?” Dean asked.

“Give her a minute.” Sam said. “There’s a lot we still don’t know about her.”

“Yeah that’s what I’m afraid of.” Dean sighed.

****

(Y/n) made her way up the warn sidewalk towards the white house. There was red, white, and blue bunting hanging on the front porch and lights and pinwheels that lined the sidewalk. Taking a deep breath, (Y/n) made her way to the front door and rang the doorbell. She stood there for a moment before an older woman opened the door.

“(Y/n)?” She asked. (Y/n) smiled some.

“Hi Mrs. McBride.” (Y/n) said. “It’s been awhile.”

“Come in, come in.” The woman said, letting (Y/n) into her house. “And how many times do I have to tell you to call me Trisha.” (Y/n) followed the older woman into the living room. “I didn’t think I’d see you back around here. Especially this time of year.”

“I…I have some unfinished business.” She said. “I saw there’s a building there now…”

“Yes.” Trisha said, going to a truck on the far side of the living room. “It was supposed to be a building for shops. But no place every went through with renting a space. It sits empty.” She carried a box over to (Y/n). “I wanted to send this to you. But with you being bounced from foster home to foster home, I had trouble getting an address.”

“Thank you.” (Y/n) said, taking the box from her. “What is it?”

“Everything that was left after…it…” Trisha said. She couldn’t bear to say it. (Y/n) nodded. “You will come see me again soon, right?”

“Of course.” (Y/n) said, standing. “I just wanted to stop by for a minute and say hi.”

“Will you be staying in town for the festival and the fireworks?” Trisha asked. (Y/n) just gave a tight smile.

“I’ll try.”

****

Dean had texted (Y/n) the room number. He and Sam had went out for food, leaving (Y/n) alone in the room. She set cross legged on one of the beds, the box sitting in front of her. She took off the lid and took out a handful of pictures. Some were charred, but some were perfectly fine. Her hands shook as she went through them. Some of them she could smile at, but some she wanted to rip into a million pieces. She was so focused on the pictures that she didn’t hear the boys coming back in.

“(Y/n?)” Sam asked quietly. She looked up at them, not realizing that she had been crying until Dean came forward and wiped a tear from her eye.

“What happened? Where did you go?” Dean asked. He looked down at the pile of pictures. “Where did you get these?”

“There wasn’t really a case here, was there?” Sam asked. (Y/n)’s head shot up. She stared at him.

“There is. But I had something else I had to do here.” She explained.

“What would you have to do here?” Dean asked. That’s when things started to click. “This isn’t your first time here, is it?” (Y/n) started shaking again.

“Dad used to drink.” She said. “Mama put up with him for so long. He always said that the last time would be the last time until he did it again.” Tears filled her eyes. “I was eight. It was the 4th of July…”

****

_(Y/n)’s mom could hear her husband moving around in the house. She closed her sore eyes for a second, the new bruise on her face hurting. She couldn’t keep doing this anymore. She watched her little girl walk into the kitchen and fill up a cup of water. She had her hair pulled into a ponytail and her shoes were untied. Her mom smiled a little._

_“(Y/n).” Her mom said. (Y/n) walked over to her._

_“Yes mama?” (Y/n) said. Her mom gently took her hand and placed a coin purse in it. It was full of coins and bills she had been hiding from her husband over the past year or two._

_“Why don’t you go down to the fair?” She said. “Go get some cotton candy and popcorn. Watch the parade.”_

_“Are you sure mama?” (Y/n) asked. Her mom looked down the hall as she heard glass crash._

_“Of course.” She hugged (Y/n) close to her. “I love you so much.”_

_“I love you too mama.” (Y/n) took the coin purse and headed into town. She stood watching the local Girl Scout troop and the championship winning baseball team walk in front of her, unaware of her dad throwing her mom around and hitting her. She smiled as she caught some candy, unaware of the broken liquor bottles all over the place. She was getting her face painted as her mom lit a book of matches and let them fall. The curtains caught fire easy. Her husband as asleep on the couch._

_(Y/n) came home and watched as the firemen sprayed water on her house. She dropped the bag of popcorn she was carrying and ran towards the house._

_“Mama!” She cried. Everyone in this town knew that her dad was a bad man, but no one ever did anything. Now, the deputy was holding her back as she watched the house she had known for eight years burn away._

_She was sent to a foster home. And from eight to sixteen, she bounced from home to home. Until the last house. The scary one. Pagan’s that were going to sacrifice her. And Jim and Joshua had shown up and killed them. Jim took her in, kept her safe._

****

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Dean asked, staring at (Y/n). “We’ve known each other for years.”

“I hate the look that people give me when I tell them.” She explained. “I saw it from foster parents, from teachers at school, and therapists. Pastor Jim didn’t give me that look. Neither did John or Caleb or Bobby. None of them. But I couldn’t stand to see anyone else do it.”

“So you just left us out of the loop?” Sam asked.

“I wanted to tell you. I know that you noticed how the 4th of July was always hard for me. And it got worse when I could start drinking legally instead of just taking from the liquor cabinet while you were outside playing with fireworks.” She sighed.

“You should’ve said something.” Dean said, probably a little harsher than he should have. (Y/n) looked up at him. Anger, fear, and regret all mingled in her eyes.

“No I shouldn’t have.” She stood up and ran from the room before Dean or Sam could stop her.

****

She paid for some matches and salt at the local dollar store and grabbed some gas in a gas can from the station before heading towards the place that had made her life a living hell. The sky was darkening fast and the fireworks would be going off soon. If she timed it just right, it could be blamed on a bottle rocket or something. There was a poltergeist in this town. It was the reason this building couldn’t be sold.

She stepped into the building. A brick flew by her head then. She turned ot look at the direction it had come from. The place was worn down and gross. An eyesore on the town and a twist of the knife in her heart. She had mixed the salt into the gas before she had shown up and she took her time dousing the ground with it. Their bodies had been fired when her mom had set the house on fire. And killing her dad was her unfinished business. So there was only one other person this could be and he was holding on to the foundation.

She lit the book of matches as her dad’s spirit appeared in front of her. For a moment, it was her mother standing there again, holding the fire in her hands. She could hear the loud booms of fireworks going off in the distance.

“I hate you so much.” She whispered at the ghost. “You made me scared to live my life. Scared to move on.” She smirked at him. “See you in hell.” She dropped the matches.

****

“Dean!” Sam said, pointing at the building. Dean slammed on the breaks and jumped out of the car. Flames were spreading fast. Sam grabbed his brother and held him back as he tried to run in.

“Let go of me Sam!” Dean said, struggling to get away. “(Y/n)!” He screamed. That’s when he saw something walk through the door. Sam let go of Dean so he could run forward. “(Y/n)?”

“It’s taken care of.” She coughed. “He can’t hurt anyone anymore.” Dean pulled her to him, holding her close.

“Come on.” He whispered. “Let’s go home.” (Y/n) nodded and climbed into the car. No one said anything as the Impala left Sharon. (Y/n) turned around and watched the building from the backseat. In her mind, it was a rundown house with a drunk as the head of household. But as the flames reached toward the sky against a backdrop of fireworks, (Y/n) felt the burden of the past years of her life lift. She turned around and faced the boys, leaving her past behind her.

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback is welcome!


End file.
